Current Obsession: Abigail Washburn

... and The Sparrow Quartet.  But I love Ms. Washburn by herself, too!  I am currently playing "Abigail Washburn and the Sparrow Quartet" over and over, especially "Great Big Wall in China," and "Oh Me Oh My."  

I've been on a female folk/bluegrass kick for the past year, listening to "The Be Good Tanyas" (oh, my lovely ladies, when, oh, when are you going on tour!),  Patty Griffin, Gillian Welch, and the cracklin' girls of Lost Highway Records, Mary Gauthier and Lucinda Williams.  There's something about these ladies and their ramblin' that has really hit my heart for the last year... 

I discovered Abigail Washburn one night listening to NPR-- she is the only musician to tour Tibet with funds from the American Government, and the only American featured on the Beijing Olympics Soundtrack.  Not like the Olympics were anything heartful or humane, but Abigail Washburn is.  She began her music career when studying abroad in China, sitting and watching Chinese dancers.  She wanted to feel a connection to the culture of America that strong-- so she picked up the banjo.  Her music is haunting, and winsome, and intelligent and sexy and imaginative, and fun and dark.  All of it.